Underway. Destination: Devron System

The Enterprise left McKinley Station earlier this afternoon. Our engineering problems were corrected, and we made our departure time, as scheduled.

Our orders were to head for the Neutral Zone, in response to the stellar anomaly reported in the Devron System. Unfortunately, our new captain ignored those orders, and insisted we pursue our original mission instead – the science mission to the Deneb System. This is particularly troubling, because it means that one of Captain Picard’s first orders as captain of the Enterprise was to disobey direct orders from Starfleet Command. He declined to provide a reason for his actions.

Shortly after departing McKinley Station, the Enterprise arrived at a set of coordinates in the middle of deep space. We dropped out of warp to find nothing of note in the vicinity. Reports indicate that Captain Picard seemed confused and agitated on the bridge, expressing comments like, “this is the right time; the right place…. he should be here now”. He then startled everyone by shouting, “Q, we’re here! This has gone on long enough!”

We have no indication who he was shouting at, or what a “Q” is.

Picard ordered the Enterprise to maintain position, and then retired to his ready room. An hour later, he emerged, and ordered us to set course for the Devon System. The Devron System is 30 light years away at warp 9. If we remain on course, we’ll arrive there on Wednesday, May 8.

I’m not sure why our new captain is acting so strangely. He seems distracted, confused, even erratic in his behavior, and he has been so from the moment he arrived on the Enterprise. I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt, perhaps he knows something that we don’t. Nonetheless, it does still set a troubling tone for this captaincy.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 30, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

Captain Picard Takes Command

Roughly two hours ago, our new captain, Jean-Luc Picard, took command of the Enterprise. He arrived at Earth aboard a commship, and was ferried to the Enterprise aboard the shuttlecraft Galileo. Our Chief Security Officer, Lieutenant Natasha Yar was his pilot, and the first of our crew to welcome him aboard.

After disembarking in Shuttlebay 2, and reading his command orders to the assembly of personnel, he then surprised everyone by glancing nervously around the bay, placing the ship on red alert, and ordering the entire ship’s crew to battle stations. This was particularly odd, since we are still docked at McKinley Station, and the local Earth Defense Net shows no threats.

To top that off, commships just brought in reports of something disturbing taking place inside the Romulan Neutral Zone. The Devron System, where these reports originate, is 30 light years from Earth. It took a commship seven days, at warp 9, to deliver the news.

Apparently, a large stellar anomaly appeared in the Devron System, and it has been drawing attention from both sides of the Zone. Starfleet Command has cancelled our science mission to Deneb IV, and has ordered us to the Neutral Zone as soon as we leave McKinley Station. Other Starfleet ships are being diverted to the border as well.

Unfortunately, we won’t be able to depart until tomorrow afternoon. The Enterprise has been having problems with our warp plasma inducers, and that will require the entire ship’s power grid to be realigned. Our engineers have a full night of work ahead of them if we are going to make our departure time as scheduled.

Whatever this anomaly is within the Devon System, it threatens the security of the Federation, and the fleet has to investigate. A war with the Romulans would be a terrible turn of events, especially since we are still fighting a prolonged war along the Cardassian front.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 29, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)

A New Captain For The USS Enterprise-D

Starfleet Command has chosen the new captain for the Enterprise. Our new commanding officer will be the 57-year-old veteran, Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

Captain Picard has been in command of the Miranda-class USS Majestic for the past seven years. Before that, he was the commanding officer of the ill-fated USS Stargazer. He is one of Starfleet’s most accomplished captains, and a man of great integrity.

Captain Picard is single, has never married, and comes from La Barre, France, on Earth, where his family has a long history of wine production. He attended a boarding school in Great Britain as a youth, and later graduated from Starfleet Academy in 2327.

With the USS Majestic currently orbiting Earth, our new captain is will arrive aboard the Enterprise on Monday. He is scheduled to take command of the Enterprise in the evening.

Captain Picard has been allowed to choose his own first officer, and reports indicate that man will be the newly-promoted Commander William T. Riker, previously assigned to the USS Hood. Riker is scheduled to rendezvous with the Enterprise during our next assignment, as are a number of other crew, including our previously assigned chief medical officer, Commander Beverly Crusher (transferring from the Nebula-class USS Prometheus).

Once Captain Picard is aboard on Monday, we are scheduled to depart for a cultural observation mission at Deneb IV. While in orbit there, we will be studying the pre-warp Bandi civilization that live on the planet.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 26, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)

The Bridge of the Original USS Enterprise

Yesterday, I posted an Enterprise ship size comparison graphic that I had found in the Starfleet historical archives. We had a few people express curiosity about the aesthetic design of the original USS Enterprise (commanded by Captain James T. Kirk), so I thought I’d follow up with another image from the archives.

Many people believe the original starship Enterprise was too “vintage”, and that it’s design aesthetic doesn’t fit with the progression of technology. This couldn’t be further from the truth, at least not in our history books. By the time the Enterprise 1701 was in service, she already had an early form of LCARS on all control panels, a beautiful sleek look, and a functional efficiency native to her era. She was a beautiful ship -- as were all ships of the Constitution-class.

I often wonder what it would have been like to serve aboard Kirk’s Enterprise. There is certainly a vintage feel about those days – maybe even a simpler outlook on life, but the technology has always been there. LCARS are about as iconic in Starfleet history, as rain is on Earth. Starfleet designers have always infused the latest technology into their ships, and the Constitution-class USS Enterprise was no exception.

Here is an image of the bridge of the original USS Enterprise (Captain Kirk’s ship). I don’t know about you, but I find this bridge to be absolutely stunning.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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(Attached Image: Bridge design by Tadeo D’oria)

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April 21, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)

Happy Easter, 2363

Happy Easter to all of you, from all of us aboard the Enteprise. May we never forget the reason for this season, and may we always be grateful for the abundant wonders and blessings that surround us everyday -- whether in deep space, or at home throughout the Federation.

Have a great start to the new week!

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 21, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)

Enterprise Lineage

I was looking through historical files today, and found this fascinating illustration. It shows a size comparison of all Starfleet ships called “Enterprise”. There have been six Starfleet ships to carry the name, although, only the last five were Federation starships. Enterprise NX-01 was an Earth Starfleet ship that was retired when the Federation was founded, in 2161.

My ancestor, Jonathan Archer, was captain of the NX-01.

Captain Archer, and myself are the only Archers to have served aboard an Enterprise.

Enterprise NX-01 -- (NX class)
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701 -- (Constitution class)
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-A -- (Enterprise class)
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-B -- (Excelsior class)
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-C -- (Ambassador class)
USS Enterprise, NCC-1701-D -- (Galaxy class)

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 20, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)

Back At McKinley Station

The Enterprise is once again docked at McKinley Station in orbit of Earth. Upgrade work has begun within our communications array, and many of our non-essential crew are taking the opportunity to enjoy one last visit to Earth before we head back out into space.

Today was also Captain Halloway’s last senior staff meeting. I was asked to attend due to my role here in the Public Affairs Office (I rarely attend senior staff meetings, since I am not a top command officer). This meeting, however, was oddly bittersweet. As a crew, we were just starting to get used to Captain Halloway’s command style, and now, less than a month after assuming command, he is retiring and being replaced by a new commanding officer. He is only 46 years old. He had a promising career still ahead of him.

It is a sad prospect for a ship to lose its captain, especially this soon, but we do understand his reasoning. His wife is dying; he should be there for her during her last days. To be honest, I would probably do the same thing, if I was in his shoes.

So far, we have no word yet on any possible command replacements, but I am certain Starfleet Command is making this a top priority. We are the flagship after all. Whomever the Admiralty chooses will be a worthy replacement.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 18, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)

Captain Thomas Halloway Is Stepping Down

As a department head, I am already aware of this news, as is Starfleet Command, however, earlier today, Captain Halloway made it public – he is retiring from Starfleet.

Nearly two months ago, Thomas Halloway’s wife, Marla, was diagnosed with Liddleton’s Disease, a debilitating illness that slowly weakens the body until it can no longer function. It is terminal, and there is no cure. Over the past three weeks, Marla’s condition has deteriorated rapidly, and Captain Halloway has chosen to retire from active duty, so that he can be with her, on Earth, during the last few months of life that she has left.

Our hearts and prayers are with the Captain and his wife as they go through this trial together. It won’t be easy for either of them, but I don’t think any of us would begrudge him this decision. Family is important – even when you are the captain of Starfleet’s flagship.

With Captain Halloway leaving the Enterprise, we will need a new commanding officer. Starfleet Command has already gone back to the selection process, and will likely find an emergency replacement within the next week or two. We do not know how this might affect the rest of the senior staff. Hopefully, we will only be losing our captain.

As sad as this is to day, it would appear that the USS Enterprise-D was not destined to be commanded by Captain Thomas Halloway.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 16, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)

Back At Earth; Communication Restored

The Enterprise has returned to Earth following our mission to the Tellidaris Nebula. We have obtained plenty of stellar data on the phenomena, and our scientists are eager to share their findings with the rest of the science community.

Now that we are back home (and out of warp), our communication channels have been reestablished. I apologize for the silence over these past three weeks, however, we didn’t have much of a choice. Our ship communications array wasn’t capable of maintaining contact with the Facebook network over the vast distance of space. Our current trans-spatial antennae is woefully inadequate for the task, and has been scheduled for an upgrade and realignment before we head back out into deep space.

In fact, you may not know this, but the USS Enterprise-D is actually the first Starfleet ship capable of broadcasting through the Facebook network. This is why we are also the first vessel to have a functioning Facebook page. Before being assigned to the Public Affairs Office here on the Enterprise, I spent a year working with scientists and engineers at Starfleet Command on a new broadcast system that allowed us broad-range access to this network. The Enterprise-D is a testbed for that system. Unfortunately, the hardware we activated last month failed. However, the planned upgrade, before we embark on our next mission, should fix the problems.

So, again, my apologies for the silence. We’re a new ship, and we’re still testing new technology. Our Facebook communications platform failed, and that shut down our office’s capabilities for most of the recent mission.

Now, it’s worth noting, this Facebook network doesn’t operate like normal communication. Normal communication provides a nexus between a transmitter and a receiver, resulting in direct-connection messages. For example, I send a message directed to another ship, and that other ship – if in range – receives my message via their comm receiver. This Facebook network is different. It works from a booster-assisted transmitter here on the Enterprise, but is broadcast without a specific destination. In a way, it is more like a distress call, or digital radio signals on Earth in the 21st century. Without directed communication, this system is not reliable for sending standard messages, but it is perfectly suited for public-access updates, like the posts I share from the Public Affairs Office here on the Enterprise.

This is certainly a fascinating system, and a promising technology. We’re still working out a few kinks, but we’ll have this system working smoothly before long. I wouldn’t be surprised if Starfleet starts installing this platform on other ships within the next five years. And, if they do, you might be able to start receiving Facebook transmissions from other ships across the Federation, thereby opening up the mysteries of space on a whole new level.

We certainly live in a fascinating era!

Enterprise Status: We will be re-docking at McKinley Station, above Earth, within the hour -- to undergo the upgrades to our communications array. We are likely to remain at Earth for the next week or two. Short-term leave has been authorized for all non-essential personnel.

-Lieutenant Sam Archer

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April 15, 2363 -- (Original Devron Timeline // Devron Timeline w/ Temporal War Reset)

(Devron Timeline 3.0)